Ponce Village – Rescuing Women from Homelessness, Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking

As she grabbed my hand, she turned away from the crowd, and with tears said, “I’m done with this life, I want off the streets!”

This is the cry of many women who have lived on the streets, bound by homelessness, often associated with addictions, domestic violence and Human Trafficking.  HUMAN TRAFFICKING HOTLINE phone number:
1-(888) 373-7888 – If you are in danger, call 911!

In 2015 studies estimated there are 565,000 homeless in the USA on any given night – 40% (nearly half) are Women.

The Leading cause of Homelessness among Women and Families is Domestic Violence.

Trafficking Among Adult Women:

The following is an excerpt from the National Human Trafficking Hotline, – The Victims:

The International Labor Organization estimates that there are 40.3 million victims of human trafficking globally, with hundreds of thousands in the United States. The victims of this crime in the U.S. are men and women, adults and children, and foreign nationals and U.S. citizens. As defined by U.S. law, victims of human trafficking can be divided into three populations:

• Children under the age of 18 induced into commercial sex
• Adults (age 18 or over) induced into commercial sex through force, fraud, or coercion
• Children and adults induced to perform labor or services through force, fraud, or coercion

Human trafficking victims have been identified in cities, suburbs, and rural areas in all 50 states, and in Washington, D.C. They are made to work or provide commercial sex against their will in legal and legitimate business settings as well as underground markets. Some victims are hidden behind locked doors in brothels and factories. In other cases, victims are in plain view and may interact with community members, but the widespread lack of awareness and understanding of trafficking leads to low levels of victim identification by the people who most often encounter them.

The US Department of Human Health and Services, Administration of Children and Families, provides-FACT SHEET: IDENTIFYING VICTIMS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING:

Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery in which victims are subjected to force, fraud or coercion for the purpose of commercial sex, debt bondage, or involuntary labor. Victims of human trafficking can be young children, teenagers, men and women.  They can be U.S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs) or foreign nationals, and they can be found in urban, suburban, and rural areas. Minors (under the age of 18) who are induced to perform commercial sex acts are victims of trafficking, regardless of whether their traffickers used force, fraud, or coercion.

Victims of human trafficking may exhibit any of the following:

• Evidence of being controlled either physically or psychologically;
• Inability to leave home or place of work;
• Inability to speak for oneself or share one’s own information;
• Information is provided by someone accompanying the individual;
• Loss of control of one’s own identification documents (ID or passport);
• Have few or no personal possessions;
• Owe a large debt that the individual is unable to pay off; or
• Loss of sense of time or space, not knowing where they are or what city or state they are in.

 Off The Streets-Cincinnati Union Bethel says:

The women range in age from 18 to 57 years old, with 35 as the average age.

At intake, 93.7% of the women we serve report being homeless, 61.3% report a mental health diagnosis, 98.2% need substance abuse treatment, 41.3% report having a medical diagnosis, and over half of the women we serve report being prescribed medications. In addition, many victims do not report having mental health or health issues at intake due to stigma, fear of rejection, or fear of receiving medical care.